Girl Meets Boy

Girl Meets Boy: Because There Are Two Sides to Every Story; edited by Kelly Milner Halls, featuring stories by Chris Crutcher, Kelly Milner Halls, Jospeh Bruchac, Cynthia Leitich Smith, James Howe, Ellen Wittlinger, Rita Williams-Garcoa. Terry Trueman, Terry Davis, Rebecca Fjelland Davis, Sara Ryan & Randy Powell (ARC version) 2012
Chronicle Books

Rating: 2.5/5

IQ "I know this shouldn't be anything, shouldn't matter, but for some reason it does matter to me; Raffina is black, and I'm white. Of course, she's not really black any more than I'm really white. She's kind of dark brown, no, kind of medium brownish. I'm definitely sort of beige or something, light beige, tinted pink or red depending on how much time I spend in the sun (I don't tan, I just burn). Maybe a better way to put this is that Raffina's ancestors came from Africa, and my ancestors came from....I don't know....not Africa. Someplace like England or Germany or Canada or something." Sean + Raffina, Sean pg. 117 (Trueman)

Twelve authors, 6 stories, straight and gay relationships. One author tells the story from the guy's point of view, the other tells the story from the girl's point of view. I picked the quote I did because it made me laugh in its simplicity and truth.

 The back of the book describes this as a "collection of he said/she said stories" but I was disappointed in that regard. Instead these are stories about the differences between guys and girls ways of thinking but I was expecting each story to be about one situation/conflict told from the perspective of the guy and girl. Those sort of stories would have been more appealing in my opinion. The stories also did not seem to mesh well with the other half of the story, let alone the stories included in the overall collection and since they ended up not all being about romantic relationships I found it a bit confusing. I know short stories have to be short but these seemed to be too quick, the main character was developed but the other characters introduced sort of floundered. Furthermore found most of the characters to be rather forgettable and I was not particularly invested in the outcome of the so-called relationship. I also never thought I would say this but..the stories needed more romance. They just seemed bland.

 I did really enjoy the story 'Love or Something Like It' (its Chris Crutcher, who I love) and its complementary story, 'Some Things Never Change' (Halls) because they really took stereotypes and turned them on its head with the jock and the 'slut'. I felt Cynthia Leitich Smith and Joseph Bruchac did a good job of actually linking up their stories in  'Falling Down to see the Moon' (Bruchac) and 'Mooning Over Broken Stars' (Smith). And 'Launchpad to Neptune' (Sara Ryan & Randy Powell) is absolutely fascinating, it actually had a plot twist that I did not see coming and had well developed characters besides the main ones. There are points in each story that are relatable and while each story has one major issue and its all rather straightforward, they are stories that need to be told especially for those who need to get over their own prejudices. Books like these might help gently prod them to rethink their antipathy to dating someone outside their race, or to disapprove of those who are gay or lesbian or to judge people based on the number of people they may or may not have slept with.

Girl Meets Boy contains a collection of short and sweet stories from some of the best talents in the YA world and while I think these stories might have been more memorable if they were longer/a book of their own, better to have a little of the story than none at all. The stories can be heavy-handed at times and the supporting characters fell flat (and the cover's weird) but they are interesting. I also loved the last bit at the end where each of the authors (except Rita Williams Garcia, who I really wanted to hear from) shared their inspiration for their respective story. This book is a quick read that will pass the time but it most likely won't stay with you, read it at the beach or in a park.

Disclosure: This is embarrassing but I don't remember.....I think I got it from the publisher. Whoever it was, thank you!

Irises

Irises by Francisco X. Stork, 2012
Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic

Rating: 3/5

IQ "Mary smiled. She always smiled when people said living family. It meant that people didn't stop being family when they died; they just turned into your dead family" pg. 144

18 year old Kate wants to be a doctor, 16 year old Mary wants to be an artist. Both girls must put their dreams on hold when their strict father dies, leaving Kate as Mary's legal guardian since their mother is in a permanent vegetative state. Her father told Kate that family always comes first, even if that means Kate needs to hold off on Stanford. Further complicating the matter is that Simon, Kate's boyfriend, has asked her to marry him in order to provide for both her and Mary. Meanwhile Mary is drawn to Marcos, a boy with artistic talent but a violent past. The girls are struggling over the death of their father, accepting their different personalities but what may be the final wedge between them is the decision regarding their mother. They can no longer afford to pay the medical bills keeping her in her vegetative state but she is their mother....

 I love Francisco Stork's books. Long time readers of this blog know that, I adored Marcelo in the Real World and was quite fond of The Last Summer of the Death Warriors. Unfortunately I found Irises to be my last favorite Stork book thus far. Granted, this was bound to happen but the summary was so good that my hopes were quite high. All this being said, it was difficult for me to put my finger on why I did not like this book. It just didn't work for me. Part of the issue was that Stork raises juggles so many balls in the air, in a way that I did not find effective. I wish he had stuck to two or three issues (such as the issue of whether or not to pull the plug and how to cope with their new-found independence) and focused on really fleshing out the secondary characters (such as Simon and even Mary). I found the issue of life support inadequately explored, even though I had thought that was at the whole heart of the book. I did find it interesting that the girls (especially Mary since she was younger) did not go crazy or at least engage in more normal teenage acts that their father had previously forbidden. Of course most people don't immediately go party after the death of a parent, but I was surprised that very little mention was made about bigger temptations of Mary and Kate (such as going to the mall, an act their father did not allow).

 Both girls seem to be losing their way where their Christian faith is concerned and I felt that Mr. Stork did a good job of subtly addressing the questions that arise when one has a crisis of faith and whether or not you can return to your faith. I also found it really interesting that the author made the girls Protestant. This was a note of interest to me because the girls are Latino and I'm Latino, and I have grown up around mostly Catholic Latinos so I found this new world of Protestant Latinos quite intriguing (of course not all experiences are the same but the book gave me a basic idea). I thought the idea of marriage-as-an-escape was an issue well-explored, even if its a concept many people do not realize is prevalent. Kate was also a great multidimensional character as was the pastor, Andy Soto. I found their interweaving storyline to be the best in the book (it is mostly Kate's story) and very believable.

 Ultimately Irises left me indifferent, I certainly don't hate it but I did not love it or even enjoy the book all that much. However the writing is mostly strong, with a few secondary characters left underdeveloped. The book mostly suffers from having too many plots and setbacks occurring. Its strength lies in the simple, effective writing and the realistic dialogue. The issue of faith was portrayed in a respectful, non-preachy manner which made the book more compelling. What did everyone else think?

Disclosure: Mr. Stork kindly sent it to me (a whole year ago I'm ashamed to say). Thank you so very much!

Cover image from Francisco Stork's website

Chain Reaction

Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles 2011 (Perfect Chemistry trilogy #3)
Walker & Company/Bloomsbury Publishing

Rating: 2/5

IQ "If I touch him, I could lose my nerve and let him explain away" Nikki, pg. 225

This is the final book in the Perfect Chemistryy trilogy and my review is spoiler-free (not just for this book but also for the previous 2 books in the series). Luis is the youngest of the 3 Fuentes brothers and unlike Alex and Carlos he has lived a relatively gang-free life. Until he moves back to Fairfield, Illinois the suburb rife with Latino Blood gang members who want him to join and be a leader like his brother Alex used to be. Nikki Cruz is the girl who has captivated Luis, mostly because she won't talk to him or allow him to get close to her. She's suspicious of his Latino Blood associations, she refuses to date LB gang members. Luis doesn't know if he wants to join the LB or no and Nikki doesn't know what will happen if she allows Luis to get close to her

 I picked the quote I did not because its majorly inspiring but because I think it captures a key moment in relationships, when you know that the person you're with messed up but that you will forgive them as soon as they 'say the right things' and touch you or hold you a certain way. When really that person needs to forget about 'the right words' and be honest.

 Anyway, I love this series and this is the book I was most looking forward to it but it doesn't compare to the first book. Or the second. Its my least favorite in the trilogy and there are a lot of elements about it that I really didn't like. I hated the ending. Not the epilogue, the LB violent ending (and no I didn't not like it because of the violence but because of who ended the violence). I also hated the family revelation. I thought it was a cheap way of shocking the reader and took away some of the appeal of the series. Granted the brothers handled it sweetly but still, it was a completely unnecessary family surprise. Also there wasn't much time spent with the beginning stages of Nikki & Luis' relationship. I totally understand lust-at-first-sight but it didn't stay that way and I wish the author had shown us how they grew to be so close.

 I did appreciate the fact that this book is so much different from its predecessors, in ways both good and bad. On the positive end, it was nice to see the girl portrayed realistically as always but also fairly un-Saintlike. The book did maintain its steamy, well-written romance scenes for teens, which are its strong suit. Along with the well-written characters ranging from Nikki & Luis to even minor characters such as Marco, Officer Cesar Reyes and the strong plot and setting of the story. Both Nikki & Luis are extremely headstrong and sometimes this stubbornness causes them to make foolish, prideful decisions. And then they have to deal with the fallout. It does all clean up tidily in the end, but its process and watching the characters try to pick themselves back up and make up for their poor decisions is rewarding and realistic and always refreshing to see.

Chain Reaction had almost all the right elements of being a good story but ultimately for me, two big plot twists ruined the rest of the book. While Chain Reaction bordered on the ridiculous at certain points, I was glad to read about the  youngest Fuentes brother and the people in his life, including the fiery-but-not-in-a-stereotypical-way Nikki. I loved that Nikki felt out of place amongst Mexicans even though she's Mexican American, she expressed feelings I definitely emphasized with and recognized. I would still highly recommend this series, the books are fun, hot, a great representation of teenage life (especially in Chicagoland suburbs) and there's never a dull moment.

Disclosure: Received from Lyn. Thank you so much!

The Agency: The Traitor in the Tunnel

The Traitor in the Tunnel (The Agency #3) by Y.S. Lee 2012

Candlewick Press

Rating: 4/5

IQ "All the feelings she had long suppressed overcame her at last, making her stagger. It was like a physical blow: she not just alone, but lonely. The solitary sate was nothing new, of course. But she was lonely now for different reasons. She was lonely despite the possibility of family-perhaps because of that very likelihood. Because she might not be absolutely truly alone, after all, and she might have preferred it so." Mary pg. 98

Mary Quinn is officially an agent and she is determined to do exceptionally well on her first assignment. To her dismay, she is given a "boring" case in which a petty thief is stealing inconsequential things from Buckingham Palace. Mary is placed as a maid in Queen Victoria's court in order to prevent any future thefts and discover the identity of the thief. But while Mary grows impatient with her case another arises when the Prince of Wales witnesses a murder in an opium den. The queen does not want him to testify due to the scandal and Mary's interest is piqued further when she learns that the accused killer may be someone she is quite familiar with.

Compared to the other two books, this one left me disappointed in terms of the mystery. The mystery element seemed to be completely disregarded at times. Worse, the conclusion was random and anti-climatic. It was not nearly as exciting or interesting as I had hoped. I read this as though it would be the final book in the trilogy (it was originally supposed to be a trilogy and it is the 3rd book) so perhaps that explains some of the ambiguity in terms of the motives of certain characters (lady-in-waiting, Octavius Jones, Anne & Felicity). Nevertheless I am still baffled as to why the criminal(s) committed the crimes that they did.

I chose the quote I did because I can relate to not necessarily wanting company, to preferring being alone but not lonely. But what this book lacks in terms of mystery development, it more than makes up for it on the romance front. James & Mary have the most engaging of exchanges, especially at the end. They both have a wry sense of humor, stubborn nature, a love of adventure and a belief in fairness for all. They make a wonderfully exasperating team which makes the storyline all the more fun. I was thrilled that we finally learned more about Mary's past, this is when new twists are thrown into the story and everything untangles in a way that makes sense. As always the best part of the book is Mary Quinn herself (with Mary&James a close second). Mary is extremely resourceful, it is amusing to see how frustrated she gets with this case in which no gossip is allowed at the palace, thus how is she to discover information? Never doubt that Mary Quinn will find a way to obtain the information she wants. Mary's resilience is inspiring, and I love the author's focus on her working-class origins as well as the daily life of other working-class people. I think many historical novels today want to focus solely on the wealthy or upper middle class, it's nice to see a book that does not shy away from describing the poverty of Victorian England and the grinding lives of the English and immigrant working class.

I needed a lovely historical fiction read, one that reminded me of why I loved studying history so much and The Traitor in the Tunnel more than delivered on that front. I appreciated the personal glimpses of Queen Victoria when she was not playing her role as THE QUEEN, instead the author paints a portray of a Queen Victoria who bore a great weight on her shoulders but who also loved her family and lots of laughter, she had a mischievous spirit. I felt that this book in the series spent more time explaining things but not in a boring manner, rather the author finds ways to cleverly insert historical or tactical information into the story (or blink-and-you-might-miss-it). One of my 'complaints' (not really I complaint since I LOVED the second book) was that I wanted to know more about The Agency and gradually more details are being revealed in this book. James Easton is infatuated with Mary Quinn as am I. This is a series that I cannot praise enough, I wish every world/European history class had at least one of these books as required reading.

Disclosure: Received from the author as part of the Candlewick Blog Tour. Thank you so much for including me Ms. Lee & Candlewick! Please read the guest post (very prevalent to the book) about opium as a Victorian obsession

Male Monday: Cracking the Ice

Cracking the Ice by Dave Hendrickson 2012
Westside Books


Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "No one had said a word in his defense. No one had lifted a finger. No one. Jessie thought of a phrase Pop often used: No snowflake in an avalanche feels responsible. He hated all of them, every snowflake on the hockey team. Yet he couldn't very well give up, could he? Doing that would rob him of his dreams and give them what they wanted." pg.153

Jessie wants to play hockey, eventually making it to the NHL. It's not a problem per se, but it will be a battle because Jessie is growing up in the 1960s and there was only one Black professional hockey player at this time, Willie O'Ree for him to look up to. Jessie is offered the opportunity to attend a prestigious New Hampshire boarding school on a full scholarship and the chance to play on the school's hockey team. Best case scenario Jessie hopes he will get spotted by scouts and be on his way to the NHL after a grand college career, worst case scenario, Jessie plays for one of the best high school hockey teams in the country and attends a top college. He sees this situation as a win-win and although his parents have some serious misgivings, they ultimately agree. Unfortunately, Jessie expected some racism but he is shocked by the racism he faces from 99% of his teammates, he expected his teammates to come around when he showed his skills. Jessie does not want to throw in the towel, but he's not sure he wants to spend four years of his life being miserable, and not given playing time by his hockey coach.

I don't have many problems with this book, I didn't love but it was not a waste of my time. In fact, I think it's one of the most interesting books I've read this year. And it touches a subject close to my heart. But first a few quibbles. Jessie has a girlfriend, they are in love. Jessie is fifteen. I thought this would be one of those 'first-love but move on' type stories but it's not which I felt was unrealistic. But then again, it was the 1960s, maybe people fell in love and stayed together at an earlier age. *shrugs* I also did not like the ending because I felt like it made the whole story pointless. I can't explain it without going into spoilers but while it wasn't completely depressing, I did feel like the ending made the whole premise unnecessary. Furthermore, I really really liked the focus on hockey but I was curious as to how Jessie was doing academically. Were his classmates just as racist? His teachers? There are a few dorm incidents but it was never clear to me if Jessie's teachers and classmates were all narrow-minded.

My father loves hockey. My father is Panamanian American so this is not exactly "normal". I am not going to pretend I watch hockey avidly because I don't have time to watch sports everyday but some of my earliest memories of father-daughter time is me lying on my father's stomach as we watch a hockey game, usually the Blackhawks versus whoever. I watched all the Stanley Cup playoff games last year and I would venture a guess that I know a little more about the Blackhawks than most bandwagon fans after our 2010 win. But whenever I hear someone talk about hockey, I think about my father. Especially because we often discuss the few Black players in the NHL and usually, if the BHawks aren't playing, we support whichever team has a Black player (if they both have Black players on their teams, great. Then it's just based on talent). My father has told me that he gets some ribbing from his friends for liking hockey and the few times I mention I like hockey, I get some weird looks (and Black people usually tell me that it's a "white sport" to watch and play). I found it interesting that the author chose to give the book a 1960s setting when this book could have been even more interesting set in the present-day. Cracking the Ice did not, I felt, do a good job of explaining why many Black Americans do not play hockey. It's mostly an economics issue and I would venture a guess that this held true in the 1960s as well as today plus I am sure there are still racial incidents today. I was also curious as to how Jessie became a fan of hockey, that was never explained. If it was because he grew up in the Northeast where hockey is hugely popular, than the book should have explained why other Black teenagers were not interested in hockey. The descriptions of hockey however are delightful. The author clearly has deep-rooted affection for this sport and it shows in the detailed dialogue and descriptions of hockey greats, hockey plays and the euphoric highs one gets playing this often-brutal, skilled, sport.

Cracking the Ice is noteworthy because it is a one-of-a-kind book, it takes the civil rights movement to the hockey arena and it handles the subject nicely. The racism is disgusting and difficult to read about, it's always scary to play with racist teammates but especially in hockey because it is a team sport and violence is involved and so as Jessie points out, you need to know your teammates have your back. If they are too bigoted to protect their own teammate solely because of his skin color, that's a serious problem. I think the author does a great job conveying the determination not just of Jessie but of Black people in general in the 1960s to follow their passions even though many white Americans tried to dissuade them. This story skates by and at times I grew genuinely nervous for Jessie. I also appreciated that the story showed how hockey evolved by explaining the safety measures, helmets were a recent thing which is scary to think about. Jessie and his roommate Stick, the only other Black student at the school, present two examples of how Black youth dealt with the racism they experienced on a daily basis, it was even more fascinating because it was from the perspective of Black athletes. Stick is willing to just coast by academically or even cheat because he knows that he's a great football and basketball player and the benefactors won't let him fail. But that doesn't mean he is accepted by all the students and even Stick realizes that he needs to be more than "the dumb Black athlete" stereotype. I am glad to see an author attempting to break the sheen of ice that covered hockey and its often-racist past for young readers.

Disclosure: Received from publisher, thank you!!

PS Here's a list of current Black NHL players. I'm a big fan of Dustin Byfuglien (the only African American currently playing to have won the Stanley Cup. With the BLACKHAWKS =D), Jamal Mayers and Jarome Iginla (Black Canadian, first Black captain in NHL)

Throwback Thursday: The Ruby Notebook

The Ruby Notebook by Laura Resau 2010
Delacorte Press/Random House

Rating: 5/5

IQ (Zeeta thinking about the Castle of If aka Chateau d’If, located on a small island about a mile away from Marseille) “I wonder about true love, if that’s what J.C. had for my mother, even after one night. I wonder about Vincent and Madame Chevalier, and what their lives would have been like if they’d admitted their love years ago. I wonder about eternal life, if it would get boring, if you’d get sick of yourself and your thoughts and the world…or if things would seem new and different every day. I wonder if living forever would be terribly sad, always loving people, then leaving them behind. I wonder how you’d survive so many losses and still be able to love.” Pg. 233

Zeeta and her mother live in a different country every year, France is 16-year old Zeeta’s 16th country. Previously they lived in Ecuador which is where the first book in this trilogy, The Indigo Notebook is set. Zeeta’s mother loves living near water because she believes it calms her and can have healing powers so they settle in Aix-en-Provence, a city full of fountains, charm and mystery. Zetta soon befriends some traveling street performers and even develops a crush on one, Jean Claude. Unfortunately (or fortunately) Zetta’s boyfriend Wendell will be living in Aix-en-Provence for a summer art program, Zetta is torn over how she feels about Wendell and Jean Claude. She is also troubled by the mysteries anonymous notes and gifts she has been receiving, she calls this admirer her fantome (ghost). Wendell agrees to help her find out who her fantome is and to find a mysterious underground spring whose water is rumored to bring immortality. Zeeta’s help is enlisted by a local antiques dealer, Vincent and his reclusive artist friend, Madame Chevalier.

I’m still puzzled by Rumi quotes but I’ve just accepted that I will never understand him or Zeeta's mother's random use of them, but at least Zeeta doesn't get it either. This book was as close to utter perfection as a book can get. I freely admit that I’m biased towards books where the main character is completely immersed in another country. *shrugs* My previous complaint was that the author didn’t throw in enough Spanish/Quichua phrases but she obliges me here. I LOVE that this book not only features common French words and phrases but also French slang. It truly makes these books stand out because the reader is as close to immersion as possible without visiting or having the book be entirely in French. I’ve been on a French kick lately (reading this book, Anna and the French Kiss, watching Midnight in Paris-FABULOUS movie, and soon to read Paris Noire and This Side of the Sky) and I adore the culture, I desperately want to visit. I enjoyed this brief exchange about the French language when Zetta meets Jean Claude for the first time, “’Enchante, Zeeta.’ He says formally, shaking my hand. Enchanted to meet you. Not pleased. Not glad. Not happy. Enchanted. Magic seeps into even the most mundane interactions in this language.” (pg. 31), no wonder French is known as the language of love! Once again the setting comes alive in Laura Resau’s more-than-capable hands. We can see the street performers doing backflips and passing around a hat for coins, the quiet mime in the town’s square, envision the old houses with private houses and commiserate with Zeeta early in the book as she heads to the only Internet café in town to email and call Wendell. The cast of characters are lively, almost every facet of their being explored from the isolated Madame Chevalier to the mime Torture (French for turtle. Pronounced tor-TEW) to the nomadic members of the theater group Illusion (Jean Claude, Amadine, etc).

I could relate to Zeeta’s fear that she did not know how to be in a long-term relationship because her mother has ever been one. Not that I am in that same situation but Zeeta expresses her confused feelings on romance so well that it’s easy to sympathize with her because it's a frustrating situation. It’s easy to see why she is attracted to Wendell and Jean Claude, they both have attractive qualities. Instead of chasing Wendell’s birth parents as in the first book, here Zeeta is trying to get a better idea of her father because she suspects he might be her fantôme, even if he’s not she’s determined to make Layla remember any sort of clue. I can’t imagine having absolutely no idea who may father was or no way of tracking him down and having a mother who is utterly unconcerned. It’s easy to get caught up in Zeeta’s fantasy about her father but the actual scenario isn’t all that unrealistic. The story turns into a mystery and then takes a delightful turn into the magical involving Celtic lore and warriors and fountains. There’s definitely a quality of magical realism in this story and it flows smoothly with the narrative. I was pleasantly surprised by the Celtic traditions woven into the story but it was fascinating to read about because I was not familiar with the Celtic influence in France.

The Ruby Notebook has a whimsical quality but there’s more complexity to the story than that word allows. It’s a captivating read set in a captivating place, Aix-en-Provence. I really liked that Wendell and Zeeta didn’t do a cliché we-are-so-in-love-in-France type thing, instead their relationship is rocky. They both had some unrealistic expectations of a long-distance relationship and they have to work out the kinks or decide to break up. Not an easy decision but one that is explored realistically. The mystery unravels slowly and it’s truly difficult to figure out who the fantôme is, I did not see it coming. These stories could easily be adapted into films, they read like a screen-play (not that I’ve ever read one). Again, it is not necessary to read the first book in the Notebooks series but I highly recommend you do. You will finish this book feeling utterly enchanted with the setting, characters and author. Do not read these books hoping to be cured of wanderlust, I now have an insatiable desire to travel.

Disclosure: From the library

Male Monday: Wolf Mark

Wolf Mark by Joseph Bruchac 2011 (ARC)
Tu Books/Lee & Low


Rating: 1.5/5

IQ "They say it's always darkest before the dawn. But what do you do when the sun comes up and it's still not a new day?" Dad pg. 338

Lucas King knows a lot, but what he doesn't know is what exactly his father does as a Black Ops infiltrator. He doesn't know why his family moves around so much. He doesn't know what happened exactly to his Uncle Cal, only that he's dead. When Luke and his father settle in a new town (I don't remember where, I think a small town out West) it seems as though they will be there for a while and maybe Luke can finally adjust and be invisible to everyone except his new friends, Meena and Renzo. But Luke has to come out of the shadows when his dad goes missing and he spots mysterious men near their trailer, he suspects they are waiting for him. Now Luke is on the run and with the help of some mysterious Russian hipsters, Luke might manage to out wit the kidnappers and save his father. But can the hipsters be trusted? And why exactly was his father kidnapped?

I wanted to like this book. The first book published by Tu Books, an imprint whose mission I adore. I have really liked previous books by Joseph Bruchac and yet Wolf Mark was a disappointment for me. First, this book commits one of my little pet peeves which is short but many chapters. There are 73 chapters, 374 pages and about five pages per chapter. I think that's a waste of a chapter, especially since each chapter ended SO DRAMATICALLY which was pointless. Why end with a cliffhanger when the reader will just turn the page and discover the big secret? It creates pointless drama and after awhile it becomes annoying and ridiculous. Another thing that bothered me was the character of Meena. She's Pakistani as the author likes to remind us whenever he bothers to mention her, she's solely there to be the love interest and the climax of the book features one of the most cliche scenes concerning love interests. I legitimately rolled my eyes. Plus I didn't understand why the author was obsessed with talking about the 'repressive culture' of Muslims in Pakistan and how Luke and Meena could never be together because of her father and yet when her father is introduced he doesn't seem all that conservative...But what finally drove me to the edge and made it impossible for me to finish this book was ALL THE METAPHORS. Not only were there too many metaphors, some of them were just strange. here's a sampling "I'd be listening as avidly as a lion in a zoo does when i hears the footsteps of its keeper approaching at feeding time with a bucket of raw meat. Growling with happy expectations" (pg. 178), "I'm further down the social ladder from them than a worm is from an eagle" (pgs. 17-18) and "she gives a little nod at that piece of information I've fed her as carefully as a zoo-goer slipping a piece of fruit through the bars to a sharp-beaked bird" (pg. 214). These metaphors are too long, too random and too ridiculous. Who thinks/talks/writes like that?

I could not even focus on the spy elements of the novel which I had thought would be the best part of the book because I was so busy rolling my eyes at the metaphors. I was also irked at how cliche the climax was, not only with Meena but also with the evil villain. And Luke even acknowledges that the whole scene is completely cliche but then....the author does nothing to make the scene any less of a cliche. Luke also intentionally reads like a know-it-all. He explains that he remembers everything, which is fine, but he feels the need to spout random facts that are completely irrelevant. Furthermore, there were dramatic moments in the story where Luke would say something like "I started thinking about....." and it would be SO RANDOM and take away from that particular scene that was getting interesting and dissolve into some philosophical musings (one particular scene towards the end comes to mind). I do however think that the genetically engineered beast hybrids were creative if not sad. And while I didn't like how the author used Luke as a mouthpiece to express his views, he makes some great points. Luke is also a funny guy which never hurts.

Wolf Mark has some good elements but they do not create the exciting story I was hoping for. The author clearly wants his readers to learn a lesson (he says as much in the Afterword) the problem is that the story is sacrificed for the lessons and the audience is forgotten. I was also bothered at how the evil villains all had to be racist. One of them kept saying "Honest Injun" which I thought was a phrase people stopped using around the '70s...but maybe in small towns? Or is it a Western expression? I don't know but it was jarring and it sounded alien to my ears which made the character who said it even more of a joke. Between the caricature characters (the elite Russian mafia-esque students that Luke sort-of befriends had potential but they are all so one-dimensional), the overuse of metaphors (I'm starting to realize that sometimes metaphors are not one's friends) and the random tangents on various aspects of today's societies (rants about our foreign policy, war in general, racism, etc) I could not handle this package. The many short chapters ironically enough made it harder for me to want to finish this book because it seemed to never end.

Disclosure: Received from Tu Books. Thank you! Especially for starting the imprint Tu Books =D

My Own Worst Frenemy

My Own Worst Frenemy by Kimberly Reid (Chanti on the Case #1) ARC
Dafina KTeen/Kensington Publishing Corp

Release Date: Today!

Rating: 4/5

IQ "But as soon as I see him sitting on the library steps waiting for me, I turn to lava, hot for him but without form. I have no resolve; everything in me turns soft." Chanti pg. 265

I chose the above sentence for the Incredible Quote because I thought it was a good example of the author taking tired old lines to describe feelings and creating new similes. The lava comparison made me pause for a second whereas if it been something like "weak at the knees" or "turned into jello" I wouldn't have given it a second glance.

Fifteen-year old Chanti (short for Chantal) has already managed to gain the disdain of her new principal, Headmistress Smythe and the 'queen bee' Lissa at her new school, Langdon Prep. Langdon is filled with mostly rich students, except for Chanti and the super-cute Marco Ruiz. Chanti and Marco attend Langdon on scholarship and everyone knows it and looks down on them because of that fact. They are also easy targets and as things begin disappearing around the school, it becomes clear that someone is setting up Chanti and Marco. The final straw is pulled when Chanti and Marco are blamed for home burglaries. Chanti's mother is an undercover cop so she can help her daughter clear her name a little but she also can't risk blowing her cover. Marco is willing to help Chanti figure out who the burglar is and possibly even to catch him/her.

Chanti is funny but it's not all silly humor, early on in the book she is talking about how to pronounce her name, "And please pronounce my name right-Shawnty, not Shanty like the towns where poor people live in a Steinbeck book" (pg. 2). At first I thought this line was an obvious trick to show how uniquely smart Chanti was for her neighborhood (where most of the kids didn't give two hoots about school) but she doesn't utter many of those lines and when she does, it doesn't seem obnoxious. In fact, it seems like a plausible line for someone with enough confidence to say. Chanti also reminded me of my younger sister in a good way. My sister utters ridiculous statements all the time and Chanti inadvertently does too such as when she's trying to silently tell other girls to back off Marco, "I'm at the back of the line working up the nerve to give her the evil eye that says 'he's mine, and you'd be wise to back up.' Some women can do that. Lana could. MJ could. But they're both scary and scary won't work for me. I could probably do crazy. Just as I'm about to get my crazy look going, Lissa looks down at the notes she's about to bore us with. Smythe looks up at me then, and I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm crazy.
'Is there anything wrong Chantal?'
'No, um..it's just that I don't have a pen.'" (pg. 24). Chanti describing herself trying to get her crazy look going made me laugh out loud for some reason. Probably because it's something I or one of my friends or my sister would say. I also really appreciated the fact that Chanti didn't over-use random slang nor did she talk completely proper. Like many Black students I know, she knew when to speak properly and when she could relax a bit and that transition is something not all authors grasp but it's an important distinction I think.

The mystery was excellent. I admit I was skeptical since Chanti was fifteen (and I do wish she was older because that might make it a little more realistic) and so she had to work her way around the driving issue and that didn't always work out plausibly. And I didn't like the fact that the book is mostly about Chanti, her mother and Marco. More character development is needed, I especially found it hard to believe that EVERYONE at Langdon refused to befriend Chanti. The mystery element kept me guessing and there were enough twists thrown in to keep me guessing but not enough to completely confuse me. I do wish Chanti's mother hadn't been a police detective because while I don't read many mysteries I feel as though that's a classic cliche (a la Nancy Drew), detective-whose-parents-are-cops-or-lawyers. That being said I really liked the fact that Chanti used authentic cop tips, she didn't go off and do crazy things. Since her mother was a cop, she makes a point of distinguishing between how cops act on TV and how they can act in real life. Sometimes I need a reminder that cops on TV are not 99% authentic! There's a good number of suspects and it's easy to follow along with Chanti as she eliminates them. The romance is light, in fact, there isn't really any romance which I liked because the way the book ended concerning Chanti's relationship with Marco made a lot of sense (bonus: bicultural romance!) for high school underclassmen.

My Own Worst Frenemy is a fine example of books we need more of in books for youth. An intelligent main character who doesn't take herself too seriously who happens to be Black and who uses common sense to solve a mystery that isn't completely random and unrealistic (i.e. a teenager solving a murder). Chanti is a fun protagonist and she could easily have been one of my best friends. I was pleasantly surprised at issues of class that were more in depth than I thought they would be concerning not just the students at Langdon but also the faculty and janitorial staff. There are some definite holes; the conclusion was rushed, more character development is needed, at times the author seemed to be stretching to make characters appear as suspects/remove them from the suspect list and personally I wish Chanti was older but overall it was a strong debut and I certainly intend on reading further about Chanti's escapades (particularly to find out the backstory of Bethanie. I'm dying to know more about her!).

Disclosure: Received from author. Thank you so very much!

Off Color: Guardian of the Dead

Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey 2010
Little, Brown and Company

Rating: 4/5

IQ "It's the shape of the story that matters, the way belief forms around it. The story has real weight." Mark pg. 173


Ellie Spencer attends Mansfield College, a boarding school in Christchurch, New Zealand. At seventeen years old she does things lot of other teenagers, do some smart activities and some not-so smart activities. Everything is grinding along for Ellie when a mysterious and beautiful woman becomes fascinated with Ellie's best friend, Kevin. The woman's fascination borders on disturbing and there's something off about her. Ellie also has a new fascination, Mark, who finally begins to notice her but it's almost as if he's enchanted her. Ellie quickly learns that she should trust her gut as she is thrust into a world of Maori mythology and fairies. There's also a serial killer on the loose known as the "Eyeslasher". Killers, fairies and lots and lots of magic will lead Ellie on a roller coaster ride over the course of a few days.

Some of the scenes jumbled together in this book. I found myself having to go back and re-read to put the events in order because for some reason in my mind they weren't clear. I think I was most disappointed in the lack of Kevin time. Not only because Kevin had Maori heritage and I wanted to read about that but also he's a genuinely interesting character. He vanishes for much of the novel and while I understand why that disappearance occurred, I wish he could have been worked in better. I also didn't like the storyline of Ellie's sister. It adds a diverse aspect to the story but other than that it was pointless. I had hoped that we would at least 'meet' Magda or hear from her but Ellie mentions her briefly every now and then and proceeds to move on. I found it hard to focus on this book too, perhaps because it moved too slow or maybe because I got too hung up on understanding the mythology/various cultures of New Zealand? I'm not entirely sure but that's entirely on me. When I closed the book I honestly did not understand why the battle for immortality occurred the way it did. There seemed to be too many supernatural elements thrown together within a few chapters, it felt rushed. I'm still not entirely sure how the Eyeslasher murders and the paranormal creatures were related....well I think I understand it but it seemed to be an unnecessary stretch.

It is hard to keep the Maori mythology straight but I didn't care, I just wanted to learn more, more, more! While the mythology seemed to be introduced at random times and could be jarring, it was fascinating to see its modern day connections. I was very pleased at how the ending of the book showed how what had occurred in the supernatural world still affected the real world. There are some devastating repercussions that made me very sad but I didn't mind the realistic aspect, I appreciated it. Adding to the overall realistic theme of the novel is Ellie. She constantly refers to herself as big although I'm not sure if she's overweight or not (I would imagine not since she takes tae kwon do). Since Ellie is trained in tae kwon do (black belt) she's able to defend herself physically which is a lot of fun to read about because some of the info shown could prove useful in real life to the reader. I also grew enamored with the ending for not being too open or firmly shut and Ellie does not put her future education on hold. She talks about classes during the book and she plans on going to University, in fact she agonizes over what she wants to study BECAUSE WHAT SHE LOVES WON'T PAY MUCH. Boy oh boy could I relate to that anxiety. It's also quite funny to read about Ellie's Classics professor, Gribaldi, who is always complaining that her students in New Zealand don't work as hard as AP American students. I'm sure that's not true but it must be nice not being exhausted every waking minute because of school. As Ellie says "I couldn't see the appeal of working yourself ragged and doing ten thousand extra-curriculars. So New Zealand only had seven universities, and most entrance courses required entrants to meet a bare minimum of standards. So what?" (pg. 49), sentences like that would did seem didactic at times. However, I didn't mind because I love comparing and contrasting how teens live in different countries. And like Ellie I don't see the appeal either but that attitude has/will hurt me.

I was enamored with Guardian of the Dead due its close-to-perfect ending along with its authentic characters struggling with teen insecurities, diverse cast and informal view of life in New Zealand specifically life at a prestigious New Zealand boarding school and in Christchurch. At times the author seemed to be pointedly discussing the diversity of her characters, when describing Samia it came across more subtly that she was Muslim, but for other characters Ellie would flat-out describe them as Asian or Desi. I'm not sure which I would prefer but it was something small that I found interesting. I do wish the book's ending had been less jumbled and that more characters became 3D. Ellie, Mark and Iris are the three teens I would say become fully fleshed out but there are so many other characters worth exploring (Kevin)! Ellie is fairly logical but not more so than the average teen except for the fact that she knows self-defense. She seems to think the most inappropriate thoughts at crucial moments but they made me pause because they were good points. When a particular character dies she observes "in the movies, you could close the eyelids of a dead man by passing one hand over his face. I had to pinch the skin of his right eyelid and tug, and even then it wouldn't close all the way over the emptied eye socket" (pg. 289), a gross image but who would have ever considered the logistics of that particular scenario? I found Ellie's down-to-earth, insecure, self-deprecating, somewhat quirky (but not obnoxiously so) personality to be refreshing.

Disclosure: Received from publisher. Thank you so much L&B Company!

*Note: I had originally planned on reading this the 2011 Global Reading Challenge. While it technically counts for the challenge since it's set in New Zealand, it does not count for my personal guidelines since the main character is not a person of color and her best friend who is does not play as much of a role in the story. But I think the author's next book does have a main character of color so I added it to the list!

PS Just a fyi: one of the characters is asexual. I've never read a book that even mentions being asexual so I was really happy to see it mentioned because I know nothing about that sexual orientation.

Throwback Thursday: And Then Everything Unraveled

And Then Everything Unraveled by Jennifer Sturman 2009
Point/Scholastic

Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "My armor. You know. Self-protective camouflage. Everybody has armor. Even you, I bet, though I still haven't figured out what form yours takes." Quinn pg. 169

Sixteen year old Delia Truesdale's mother, T.K. has disappeared. T.K. was working on a project in Antarctica with an environmental group that she actively supported. Delia learns a few weeks later that the ship carrying her mother and the crew has vanished and they are all presumed dead. Delia refuses to believe it, especially since T.K. has a plan for everything and she's much "too organized to simply disappear" (back cover). Over Delia's objections she is sent to live with her boho aunt Charley (who has no experience raising kids) in New York City, her mother's other sister, Patience is uptight and in charge of Delia's schooling and finances. The move from Silicon Valley to NYC is a cultural shock. When the two aunts aren't battling over Delia, they are fighting over every little thing. All Delia wants is to find her mother and not fall in like with Quinn, the king of the Do-Nothings. It becomes clear to Delia that she is the only one who can do something about her mother's disappearance but the case quickly becomes much more intricate than she thought.

I'm not sure if it's an element of a mystery novel or not but I've decided that I'm really bothered when a character foreshadows something very dramatically (i. e. "I should have known..." or "How could I have been so stupid..." etc). These statements have really started to bug me and there are a few of those throughout the book. The ending was an annoying type of cliffhanger and yet as I type this review and reflect I've realized that I'm not in a hurry to read the sequel (which I own). I thought it was somewhat ironic that the ice queen Aunt Patience was a more well-rounded character to me than Aunt Charley. I found Charley to be the typical free-spirit, reluctant-to-play-mom-but-rises-to-the-occasion-beautifully aunt. Patience was more complex, in part because Delia doesn't spend much time with her so there's an air of mystery about her. Of course we have the genius best friend who is a whiz with technology and thus can crack anything. I really need to find a friend like that because they only seem to exist in books and movies.....And I have to admit I'm skeptical at the power a certain oil company yields so I was disappointed that I couldn't entirely believe the plot. The most ANNOYING part though is a *spoiler: highlight to read* that Delia finally told Quinn what was going on and not only does the author write the scene off camera (so to speak) but we don't get to read about his reaction afterward, we are just told to assume he accepts it. Ugh no!* End of spoiler

All that being said, I really liked the mystery element. It's not ridiculously dramatic (as in a teenager solving a murder or something) and while one particular villain was obvious, I was not expecting another villain (hinted at via psychic in what I thought was a clever twist). The mystery is rather complex and it's definitely original. Delia is a down-to-earth, mostly logical main character who neither wallows in self-pity nor is she overconfident about her looks. In short, she has good self esteem. I enjoyed reading about Delia's comparing and contrasting NYC to Silicon Valley having only spent four tourist-y days in NYC and never been to California. Plus as flat a character as Quinn was, he embodied typical boy in being so on and off so I definitely could relate to Delia's confusion. I did roll my eyes at the classic Romeo and Juliet scene performed in drama class of course in front of everyone.

And Then Everything Unraveled is an appealing read due to its mostly plausible mystery and the engaging voice of Delia. The setting of NYC is a vibrant one in this book as well and I liked how some of the seemingly-random occurrences were tied into the story. I have to admit I don't see why the author couldn't have made this one mystery story instead of making a sequel. I thought the book was moving slowly and knowing I had the sequel didn't appease me, it just bothered me that I knew the mystery wouldn't be wrapped up and the book would mostly be about the more mundane and the data-gathering. Most of the characters were typical, Quinn is nothing special, Aunt Charley is great fun but still typical (there was a time when she would be atypical but now that I'm a somewhat jaded reader....haha) and Thad is predictable although his motives are fuzzy. The mystery did keep me on my toes when Delia stopped thinking about Quinn. I will eventually read the sequel especially since I'm hoping Delia's half Indian side (her father died) will be explored.

Disclosure: Won (over a year ago I think which is super embarrassing) from Marjolein Book Blog and the author (autographed). Thank you both so much!

Orchards

Orchards by Holly Thompson 2011
Delacorte Press/Random House

Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "I try to learn fast/make up for my /non-Japanese half/but Uncle makes/remarks/like after I set the breakfast table-how are we supposed to eat..../with our hands?/I rush to set out chopsticks..../seconds/too late/they seem to think/I can just switch/one half of me/on/and leave the other/half of me/off/but I'm like/warm water/pouring from a faucet/the hot/and cold/both flowing/as one." pg. 24

One of Kana Goldberg's classmates committed suicide at the end of Kana's eight grade year. Everyone wonders who's responsible, but Kana knows she played a small part at least by saying some not-so-nice things to Rachel (the classmate) and not sticking up for her when Kana's cliquey friends said harsh or rude things. Her parents are upset at Kana's behavior and possible hand in the situation so they send her to Japan, specifically the farm Kana's mother grew up on, amongst the mikan orange groves. Kana's grandmother (Baachan) is disapproving of her "Jewish bottom" and it's clear she doesn't trust Kana's Jewish father, it's not tradition to marry outside your culture. Kana is angry with her parents for sending her away from her friends but gradually the distance allows her to work out her feelings of grief and guilt. Her grieving process is interrupted by the death of another friend and that plunges her into a deeper abyss of confusion.

I think the free verse format of the book kept me from better visualizing the countryside of Japan. I've got the travel bug so I wanted way more details than were provided. Kana does spend a lot of time describing food which was yummy to read about (this coming from someone whose never had Japanese food) but I wanted her to describe the differences in schooling, what do the teenagers in Japan do for fun, etc. Instead Kana is a loner in Japan except for cousins a few years older than herself which is understandable but I do wish she had made one friend or her cousins had been around more in the story to take her to a variety of places. I think I was most frustrated that it took place in the countryside since I much prefer reading about city life but I did love the bits about Bon dances and the yukata (which I think is the Japanese word for kimono). The author also didn't make it clear if she was translating the Japanese words to English for example on page 217 the author writes "a yukata kimono." That confused me because I was unsure of a yukata was a type of kimono or the word for kimono in Japan. The story starts off slow and I didn't really take notice of all the details until chapter 3, which isn't bad but still the first two chapters were short but uninteresting, all about the plane ride and Kana's arrival. Eh

The reason for Kana's arrival in Japan is compelling to read about especially as Kana works through her feelings of guilt, anger and sadness. She ranges hot and cold but never gets out of hand. Sometimes she's defensive "Lisa didn't mean it/everyone knows/when a person says/certain things/they don't mean/the words/they say/really" (pg. 109), other times apologetic. The things Kana and her friends said were sad but not surprising. Kana doesn't have a sudden epiphany "What I did was bad! And I regret it absolutely" instead she really has to work on not blaming Rachel for committing suicide and not being able to "take a joke." I truly felt as though I "watched" Kana mature. Kana's personality was withdrawn, she had friends and managed to be in the popular group but she was more on the outside of that group. I could relate to her withdrawn personality but what I couldn't relate to was her fascination with physics. AND YET I loved reading about the connections she drew from physics to the real world becuase no matter how hard my science teacher tries I will never understand the point of physics. "Physics and You/spells it out/says/if body A exerts a force/pn body B/then body B will exert a force/of the same magnitude/on body A/push and pull/I think/maybe this/is what happened/with Lisa/and you, Ruth-/body A/ and body B" (pg. 280) that makes sense to me.

Orchards I think would actually be a stronger story if it wasn't in free verse. I don't think the author was able to fully explore other characters or the setting as effectively in the chosen format. The circumstances surrounding Kana's visit to Japan are what should really draw a reader in. I was half and half. I definitely wanted to see how the author handled the subject of bullying from the voice of someone who not only was a bully but her victim had a very tragic end. The story delivers completely on that part and it's an engaging narrative. I wasn't so thrilled with the descriptions of life in Japan's rural areas, I wanted Japan to play more of a central role but that's not this kind of book. A bonus was the discussions of trying to fit into a culture that is part of you but you have little connection to the actual land (or so you think). I 100% understood Kana's half and half dilemma that gradually becomes less of a problem and more of a gift. The story is most certainly relevant due to the depressing stories of increased bullying (cyber, verbal, not so much physical I don't think) and I think Kana handles the entire situation in an authentic manner, she's never a complete angel nor is she a bitter, "Mean Girl". She's ordinary and I would venture a guess that she could easily have been you or me at some point in our lives.

Disclosure: From the library (also why I had to rush to review it)

*I know I said this book would be reviewed for Japan week but I needed to write a review and publish it so that I can keep the blog fairly current. I still have quite a few options for when I'm able to plan out the week (probably Thanksgiving week or Christmas break when I'll have time to read, read, read).

Subway Girl

Subway Girl by P.J. Converse 2011
HarperTeen/Harper Collins

Rating: 1.5/5

IQ "He couldn't believe he was actually speaking English. It was exhilarating, and a little dangerous, like the first time he'd gotten up on a two-wheeler, although back then his problem was speeding out control whereas now the challenge was to go fast enough so that his conversation wouldn't wobble and crash." Simon pg. 27

Simon rides the subway everyday in Hong Kong and he often sees Subway Girl. He doesn't know her name but she has this air of mystery about her. He can't seem to work up the courage to approach her, she's unattainable and always has her headphones in her ears. One day Simon FINALLY approaches her and learns that she is officially out of his reach because she only speaks English and he only speaks Cantonese Chinese. Amy turns out to be a Chinese American girl who did not grow up speaking Cantonese. They both continue to take the same subway and soon they manage to find a connection and bridge the gap a tiny bit. Simon is able to admit (in English) that he is dropping out of school and Amy admits (in English as well) that she is pregnant with her ex's baby. Both of them are lonely because even though they have parents, their parents are only a physical presence, never asking much about the really personal details of Simon and Amy's lives. Amy is reluctant to turn to romance and Simon doesn't want to push her further than she wants to go.

Oh where to start on how sad I was to dislike this book. First the setting of Hong Kong felt extremely vague. I sort-of have an image of how the Hong Kong subway system works and an elementary grasp of the schooling system but that's it. If a book is set entirely in Hong Kong and the summary makes it sound like Hong Kong will play a major role in the story, it should deliver. Another thing I really disliked was the disjointed dual narration of Amy and Simon. It seemed as if the author wrote their stories separately and then combined them without any bother with transitions, smooth or otherwise. Furthermore the story was SO RANDOM. It jumped from subject to subject starting off trivial and then all of sudden Amy was ranting about sexuality and the hypocrisy of her Catholic school. It came out of absolutely nowhere and it was quite annoying. The dialogues were long, it was never clear who was speaking and again, there were no transitions so it all seemed jumbled together. The side characters were ghosts. They were brought into a scene when convenient but I couldn't keep them straight otherwise and their reasons for saying certain things didn't add up (I couldn't understand the character of Katie for the life of me). And the glue of the story, the 'blossoming' relationship between Simon and Amy. What was their connection? They bumped into each other on the subway and through the language barrier they just....fell in love? Became best friends? WHAT?! The ending was a complete groan, open but not with an air of mystery or with enough clues for the reader (or at least not this reader) to figure out what happens next. Honestly it seemed like the author just didn't know where to take the story.

I could absolutely relate to Simon's struggle to learn English. I don't even understand some of our grammar rules sometimes (gerunds????) and I grew up speaking the language. I could also relate to him on learning a second language because I struggle with speaking Spanish. I can understand it fairly well but like Simon my brain and tongue freeze when I need to speak in a language different from my own. Even though Amy blabbered on about nothing in particular, Simon was a decent character. He was like a puppy-dog; vulnerable, sweet, just wanting some good company but at the same time he wasn't pure fluff, he battled with wanting to quit school and learning new job skills. So I should say that I understood why Amy liked him but not why he liked her aside from her being beautiful and just different. Furthermore, Amy didn't learn that much about him. The story is an easy read and moves along.

The premise of Subway Girl filled me with such hope, a romance between two characters who don't speak the same language and have to deal with the girl being pregnant with another guy's child. Alas, the actual story did not live up to its fascinating premise. The secondary characters blended together and there were too many storylines trying to be juggled. The author dropped the ball on all of them ranging from Simon wanting to quit school to Amy being pregnant to Amy's parents having issues. The fact that the author brought up abortion in a non-judgemental way was nice but the delivery fell flat. There was little discussion of Amy's options and how she felt making the decision. The author brings up a lot of issues (too many I think) in this book but it may be a good starting point for a conversation for some readers. Overall the story made too many complex situations seem simple or just glossed over them (it felt as though the author had a page limit or something).

Disclosure: Received as a gift from a book fairy! Thank you T :D

Throwback Thursday: The Indigo Notebook

The Indigo Notebook by Laura Resau 2009
Delacorte Press/Random House

Rating: 4.5/5

IQ "There are ties stronger than blood" pg. 81 Mamita Luz

15 year old Zeeta lives in a different country every year with her free-spirited mother Layla. Layla teaches ESL classes in the various countries and loves the wandering lifestyle; she quotes Rumi, dates starving artists and other guys with no solid future plans and lives in the moment. Zeeta keeps their little family together; she does the dishes, tries to encourage Layla to get to her classes on time, signs them up for first aid classes and is a very practical person. Layla loves the nomadic lifestyle, Zeeta dreams of settling down in suburban America with a Handsome Magazine Dad. This year Zeeta and her mother move to Ecuador (specifically Otavalo which is near the Andes) where Zeeta meets Wendell, an American teenager who wants to find his birth parents. Layla meets Jeff, who is Handsome Magazine Dad. Zeeta and Wendall are both about to learn that they need to be careful what they for and embrace what they have. Zeeta and Wendall's quest to find his parents leads them to an indigenous village, delicious bread, crystal caves, and venomous creatures and flowers.

This is a silly thing to dislike and I didn't dislike it per se but I genuinely did not understand the Rumi quotes. My confusion over what he was saying made me feel like a complete idiot but maybe in time I will understand better. For now I'm content just thinking that he writes vague poetry that celebrates nature, simplicity and individuality (and that might not even be right). I was bothered by the fact that the Layla storyline was really cliche, whimsical mother kept safe/protected by down-to-earth daughter who desperately wants her mother to change. I was hoping Layla would have a less abrupt change (ex: *spoiler highlight to read* What made the one accident in Ecuador lead Layla back to Jeff? Why didn't Layla do that when she had other close-calls and Zeeta begged her to go back to a 'normal' life?* End of spoiler*) and be a little less of a caricature.

This book left me with a serious case of wanderlust. It was hard for me at first to fathom how Zeeta could want to give up her traveling lifestyle with Layla. She spoke seven different languages and had already lived in fifteen different countries. I want to travel the world and speak at least four languages so badly, I'm envious of all those who get to travel and it's hard for me to understand people/characters who don't appreciate the immense opportunity they've been given to travel the world. The author did an excellent job of (almost) completely immersing me in the world of Otavalo (I do wish more Quichua and Spanish words had been thrown in). The hustle and bustle of the market, the loud, cajoling calls of the vendors to tourists with backpacks and water bottles, the dazzling crystal caves in a quiet village, every scene is described in glowing terms down to the most minut detail. Zeeta is the typical teenager in that she doesn't know exactly what she wants and often feels torn between two different sides. She is observant, meticulous and she has a cautiously adventurous spirit. I didn't think Zeeta was boringly practical because she was always willing to explore, she just wanted to know her mother had a financial nest egg for their future.

The Indigo Notebook excels in bringing to life the colors, sounds, smells and even the textures of Ecuador to readers who may never get the chance to visit the country. Not only does it provide more than a cursory glance at life in Ecuador but it opens the page to the larger world of Central American culture (obviously Latin American cultures are very diverse but there are some unifying/common elements). The 'treatment' of being bicultural/multiracial was rarely mentioned but when it was, it was handled deftly. Zeeta's mother is white but Layla doesn't remember what ethnicity her father was but it's clear he wasn't white (and that is why this is not an off-color review). Zeeta observes (and is somewhat irked) that the conversation between Layla and her new 'boy toy' will soon "take a turn to how 'mixed-race' kids always turn out beautiful-in the same way that mutts are tougher than purebreds-and then he'll ask, Where is her father from anyway?" (pg. 6). Through Wendall's avid search for his birth parents, Zeeta is able to live vicariously through him because she doesn't have a clue as to her father's name and where he might live. This is a tale that I was absolutely enamored with due to its fantastic setting of Ecuador, mostly unique characters and the fact that Ecuador did not overpower Zeeta and the other characters. The setting did not overtake the plot and/or the characters which is something that I think is quite important. Otavalo was a major character in and of itself but it wasn't more important than Zeeta, Wendall, and a few other characters. I can't wait to read the next book in the series, The Ruby Notebook!

Disclosure: From ze library

Hosted by Take Me Away Reading (I review books from 2009 and older)

Throwback Thursday: A Bottle in the Gaza Sea

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea by Valerie Zenatti 2008 (English translation done by Adriana Hunter)
Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books

Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "Only complete idiots are really ugly. That's a rule I made up, but I do believe it. You can't be as sensitive, inquisitive and intelligent as she is and have a face like a rat. People's qualities show on their faces, in their eyes, in whether or not they tense their lips when you're talking." Gazaman pg. 75

Tal Levine is an Israeli but she's curious about the "other side". The other side being the Gaza Strip so she decides to write a letter, place it in a bottle and throw it into the Gaza Sea. She's not 100% positive that she will get a reply but it's worth a shot. The letter lands in the hands of "Gazaman" (the email address and pseudonym he uses), a sarcastic Palestinian guy. Tal spills her guts to him, Gazaman refuses to reveal much of anything about himself. He makes fun of her constantly but things slowly start to change and they become-against all odds-acquittances via email. Beliefs and attitudes will be changed, expectations will shatter and the world might appear a bit more hopeful than before.

The author is an Israeli and I personally thought it showed. Her portrayal of "Gazaman" felt incomplete. I might be being too hasty but I was annoyed that "Gazaman" was so down on his faith and all aspects of Muslim culture. He had nothing positive to say about Palestine which I thought took away from the supposedly neutral tone of the book. He mocks his culture in addition to Tal and since I have a lot of respect for the Muslim culture, this grated on me. In addition I have mixed feelings about the ending. I liked how open-ended it was (which is rare for me because I usually detest those. I'd take a sad ending over no ending almost any day), it works just right for this book. I would however, have appreciated a sequel/epilogue just to know where both of them are in their respective lives three years later. I finished the book not liking Tal but I respected her. She was just SO CHEERFUL and optimistic, it was too much. No wonder Gazaman felt the need to bring her back to reality sometimes. I found her a bit unrealistic in that she immediately told this male stranger all about her life, included a picture, etc. Also on the author's part, sometimes she would explain a lot about a character (for example Tal's brother, Eyyan) but not others (like Tal's boyfriend, Ori). Plus Tal would write down conversations she had with people and they were often extremely long dialogues.

This may sound odd but I was pleased that Ori was a good guy. I'm growing tired of the storyline where a new guy comes in and then the girl wakes up and realizes that *GASP* her boyfriend is actually a jerk. Ori was fairly one-dimensional but he wasn't perfect and yet they had a strong relationship, even though Tal was writing to Gazaman. I adored Gazaman and his biting sense of humor, mainly because I'm sarcastic all the time with my friends so I have a fondness for good sarcasm. The author did an excellent job of making it clear when Gazaman was being sarcastic and when he was serious, "[w]e should set up an Israeli-Palestinian asylum, you and me. It would be a beautiful symbol of reconciliation as Westerners say. We could call it the Majnun & Meshuga Institute, with our motto engraved over the door: Peace comes from insanity" (pg. 121), I think that's an utterly brilliant motto. Perhaps the email exchange between two strangers is an easy way to explain a complex situation but I didn't care because I was fascinated by the descriptions of life in the Gaza Strip (Palestine) versus life in Israel. Different hardly begins to describe the two places.

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea has one of the most appropriate endings I've come across, not hopelessly optimistic but open ended enough that it could be happy. I wanted a bit more clarity but the ending works. I loved every minute of observing Jerusalem with Tal, surveying the Gaza Strip with Gazaman. And like both Tal (and although he wouldn't admit it at first, Gazaman) I eagerly awaited their emails to each other. I became caught up in stories about the bombings, fearing the author would utterly break my heart (and she sort-of did. Just consider lines like the following, "I don't understand how life can hinge on so little: whether or not you feel like going to the cafe along a certain street", pg. 9). I would have liked more space/explanation/introspection in between the dialogue and further exploration of Gazaman's Muslim faith (why is he so delusional? Was he even raised Muslim?). On a more personal note I really enjoyed this book because I knew bits and pieces about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict but not much. This book pried my eyes wide open and forced me to do a double-take, I love when a book makes me do that! An arresting tale that manages to walk the fine line between not being naively optimistic nor being pessimistically realistic. I wish I could give this book not only to all American high school students and government leaders but to all Israelis and Palestinians as well. Like the letters Tal and Gazaman write to each other, it would be another drop in the ocean. And to be perfectly honest, before reading this book I would have said I was more sympathetic to the Israeli cause. Now I'm torn. But I will keep reading so that I can make up my mind and be truly well-informed.


Disclosure: From the library

PS I actually prefer the French cover (left). Which cover do you prefer?

I also loved the following line said by Tal's (typical wise, artistic, intellectual father) "instead of loving this city [Jerusalem] in the way it deserves, instead of getting along, they've [Israelis and Palestinians] fought over her for more than fifty years, the way men might once have fought for a woman, with passion, with a little more hate for their rivals every day. They don't even realize their wars are now damaging the thing they claim to love, damaging it more and more violently in one way or another" (pg. 9)

Throwback Thursday: The Fight

The Fight by L. Divine 2006
Dafina/Kensington

Rating: 2/5

IQ "These White folks hate seeing my Black self walk up the street. They probably think I'm gone steal one of their lawn ornaments or key their car or something. Sometimes I'll slow down and stare at the White people coming out of their houses in the morning to put some fear in these snooty people. I know it's wrong, but so is stereotyping." Jayd pg. 31

Sixteen-year old Jayd Jackson is a proud resident of Compton, California but even life in Compton hasn't prepared her for the drama of high school. She attends South Bay High aka Drama High, a school divided by cliques and Jayd is a bit of an anomly since she rolls effortlessly with many different cliques or crews ranging from South Central (aka the Black crew) to the Drama Club. Some kids don't like that but Jayd doesn't care and with her girls Nellie and Mickey beside her along with Mama training Jayd in the magical ways, she knows she can handle the haters. Drama High is a predominantly white school in one of the wealthiest parts of LA so Jayd's already got it tough. Her first day of her junior year dos not start off drama-free as she had hoped instead her fairly recent-ex boyfriend (KJ who dumped her for not having sex with him) has a new girlfriend (Trecee) who wants to fight Jayd. It doesn't help that Jayd's former best-friend Misty is spreading rumors about Jayd and egging on Trecee.

I've been sitting here trying to figure out why I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads a while ago because now I would probably give it 2. Then I read a few reviews that really irritated me. One of them basically said 'notice that all the Black teens gave the book 4 or 5 stars and the white adults gave it 1 or 2.' Now aside from the fact that this Black teen gave it 3 stars not 4. How does that reviewer know the kids are Black? Most of the reviewer profiles DON'T HAVE PICTURES WITH FACES ON THEM. Anyway the review wasn't bad but that (paraphrased) comment really irritated me. I think I would like this story a lot more if there wasn't the magical element to it. Mostly because I don't understand all the cleansings, potions and spells. I'm fairly skeptical but I think I believe in curanderas and stuff so I can understand the background of Jayd's spiritual heritage but I think it takes away from what could be a really good story about a contemporary Black teen trying to straddle many different worlds. The magical elements are like a safety net, Jayd knows that because of her magical powers and her Mama (who is really her grandmother, she calls her actual mother Mom) she is safe from basically everything. Oh and of course in addition to her magic skills she's in all AP and honors classes, drop dead gorgeous, has a job and all the guys flirt with her. Perfect protagonists are probably my second or third biggest pet peeve especially when like Jayd, they have a 'woe is me' attitude. Plus the book felt outdated to me. I have lots of friends who speak like Jayd with lots of slang, I do too sometimes, but "giving up the cookies" is definitely not an expression used anymore, same with "heffa."

I do like that while the drama may be more intense than a lot of teens are used to (including myself. We don't have physical girl fights at my school), the root of the problems are the same in all high schools. The story moves quickly and while Jayd is perfect she still manages to get herself in some amusing scrapes. There's a lot of emphasis on descriptions of people and places. The focus on describing Compton and LA was a good call, I didn't particularly care for how people were described (and their outfits). Especially since the author doesn't seem to fond of white people. I choose the quote I did because it's funny and definitely true when it comes to certain neighborhoods but that doesn't mean I have something bad to say about every white person. Jayd would talk about how nice/funny a guy was BUT he was white. I could relate to her apprehension about going out with Jeremy (a nice white guy) because while race shouldn't hold you back from dating someone, there are some questions worth thinking about and trying to answer concerning the relationship (and no I don't mean 'will my friends approve'). Like any teenager for about a hot minute Jayd worried about what people would think if she started dating Jeremy but she didn't let that deter her from going on one date with him.

The Fight contain fond childhood memories for me because they were some of the earliest books I found with Black teenagers on the cover. I devoured these books. The story isn't really a 'problem novel' a few heavy problems are mentioned, but mostly this is about life in privileged high school. I have a much lower tolerance for these books now but I gobbled them up when I was younger (read: middle school), I am curious as to how Jayd is doing because it's a long series (at least fourteen books) but its length deters me from catching up on reading them. There's so many books in the series and nothing really happens. This book is fast-paced but the action takes place in a couple of days which I found irritating. Jayd's the perfect protagonist and by that I don't mean she's fun yet flawed, no Jayd has it all. Her only flaw is something I'm not so sure the author sees as a flaw, I can't tell. Jayd is very judgemental especially concerning her white classmates and after awhile I was tired of her always mentioning that they wore white people clothes, sounded white, etc.

Disclosure: Bought

Throwback Thursday: Wuthering High (off color)

Wuthering High by Cara Lockwood 2006
MTV Books/ Simon & Schuster

Rating: 3/5

IQ "Some crazy people would say that forests and mountains are beautiful, but to me the outdoors are just plain creepy. I see forests and I think of maniacs wielding chainsaws. You never hear of psychotic, crazed killers in movies striking at the mall. No. The freaky killers who turn their victims into wax do it way out of in the country somewhere far away from Banana Republic." Miranda pg. 20

Fifteen year old Miranda Tate is slightly spoiled so you can imagine her horror when after crashing her father's car (and maxing out her stepmother's credit cards) she is sent to Bard Academy, a school in the middle of nothing where no contact is allowed with the outside world. Its a school for 'juvenile delinquents' (or so they are deemed by their parents). No phone calls, no Internet, a uniform must be worn at all times, there's a strict curfew and woods nearby that are just plain creepy. Of course what would a boarding school be if it wasn't haunted? Miranda can't sleep due to terrifying nightmares, fires are randomly being set, strange maniac laughter fills the air and there's something not right about the faculty at Bard. It just so happens that the members of the faculty at Bard are ghosts (many of them famous writers) stuck in limbo. That's not the only secret the faculty is keeping, there's something special about Miranda and why is it so crucial that nothing happen to a worn page torn from Wuthering Heights? Who is setting the fires? Furthermore, is Heathcliff really a student at Bard or is he the ACTUAL Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights?

I like knowing the motives of why an author does what he or she does and this book puzzled me a bit because I thought the assignments of the famous writers turned teachers was random. It could have at least been explained a bit better for those of us not familiar with all the authors. Coach H (Hemingway) as a gym teacher makes sense, I didn't understand why Charlotte Bronte was Headmistress B, perhaps because she was a governess? However, I didn't know Charlotte Bronte was a governess until I looked it up. And why was Virginia Woolf a dorm mother? I'm just curious as to how the author figured out who should do what at Bard academy. I was also disappointed in the misleading of the back cover which claimed "the students' lives also start to mirror the classics they're reading-tragic novels like Dracula, Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre" but Miranda and her friends are RARELY in class. Bard Academy has a tough curriculum but Miranda only mentions classes to complain a bit but she doesn't mention studying/analyzing the classics. I wish there had been more discussion of the classics. I don't like Ryan either, I know he's supposed to be dreamy and actually really sweet but I just don't like him. Heathcliff all the way!

I decided to review this book because of Samir. I love Samir, the new friend of Miranda. He was sent to Bard because his traditional Indian parents had arranged a marriage for him when he turned nineteen but he refused to comply. Samir is not exactly a ladies' man but as is usually the case, he's quite funny and determined to find a girl for him. One of my favorite bits of dialogue

"'Will you marry me?' he asks me
'Uh....' I glance at Hana
'He asks every girl he meets,' Hanna explains. 'Don't worry about it.'" (pg. 58) Blade, Miranda's roommate remains a caricature and Hana doesn't have much of a personality yet but at least one secondary character (Samir) does. I really like Miranda too. I started out not liking her because she was (still is actually) spoiled and a bit whiny but I probably whine too so I can relate. Plus she's funny because she has this realistic/self-deprecating sense of humor such as "Heathcliff contains my squirming easily, carrying me as if I weigh nothing, which I know is not true at all despite the Bard Academy cafeteria diet" (pg. 208). Miranda is a strong main character but I really like her because she's not too extreme. Not extremely trendy, shy, pretty, mean, etc. She's average, like many other high school girls (including myself) that I know. Sometimes she feels beautiful, other times she thinks she's 'hideous'. How refreshing and realistic.

Wuthering High's strengths lie in its premise being quite novel and having some dominant, interesting characters in Miranda, Samir and Heathcliff. The ending left me with more questions than answers which normally bothers me to no end but I would have been sad to just leave these characters behind, I want to know more about Bard Academy, its students and faculty. One mystery is neatly closed but there are several others left open. At least I know that there are currently two other books out in this series and the author is working on a fourth (final) book. Since the book places such emphasis on the literary classics I want more time to be spent discussing the classics and the people who wrote them. I would also like to see Hana be more than just a sidekick and Blade be more than the creepy roommate. I MUST know more about Heathcliff. And I need Samir to date someone and find happiness :)

Disclosure: From the biblioteca

Love, Inc

Love, Inc by Yvonne Collins & Sally Rideout 2011
Hyperion/Disney Book Group

Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "Relationships are like sports. If you want to compete, you have to keep in shape." Kali pg. 235

Zahra, Kali and Syd meet in therapy. Their therapy group is for the children of divorcees. Even though all the teens in the group would quickly tell you that it's their parents who need to be in therapy not them, the girls ignore the cheesiness of therapy and reluctantly become friends after a scavenger hunt throws them together. It doesn't hurt that they discover they all dated the same guy who went by a different name. Erick aka Rico aka Rick. The girls create a plan for sweet revenge and payback feels awesome. In fact their plan was so good that other teens start approaching them for help on various matters of heart whether it's breaking up with someone, matchmaking, making up or exacting revenge. Love, Inc is born and business is booming. If only the three girls could practice what they preach.

This is my second (first) Collins & Rideout novel and once again the theme here is girl-who-complains-about-not-being-very-pretty and yet she manages to get ALL THE GUYS. It's completely baffling because it's not even as if she suddenly became more confident and therefore more guys start to sit up and take notice of her. I couldn't help but roll my eyes every time a new guy began flirting with her and/or asked her out because hey she was supposed to be mousy and nothing 'special'. And *SPOILER: highlight to read* Do couples really give one week anniversary presents? That's a bit much to me, but that could just be because I don't really keep track of anniversaries. *End of Spoiler*The other thing that really bothered me was the age of the girls. They were sophomores, Zahra was fifteen but they acted like they were juniors or seniors. It just didn't make sense to me that girls so young would have gone threw almost every single relationship problem one can experience in high school. I was really skeptical as to how well Kali's matchmaking formula worked that was the only part of the business that seemed highly implausible to me. Granted there are people who love to match make (hello Emma) but that doesn't mean they are always going to be good at it. Kali's system wasn't always perfect which I liked but it was a very vague process as to how exactly she calculated their compatibility.

Surprisingly this was one book I didn't mind not having the perspectives of all the main characters. Zahra best describes the three girls' personalities "Kali bubbles over with options, so if she were in charge of mediation, no one would stay together long. She's a 'grass is always greener' type, I'm a 'look how green this grass is' type, and Syd's a 'torch the lawn' type. The balance works for us" (pg. 263), and they become fully vibrant characters through her narration. Syd and Kali's stories were fully explored, I finished the book feeling as though I fully understood each of the three girls as well as the minor characters. It's a long book and sometimes I would put it down and forget to pick it back up but I never felt lost upon resuming it and the pace was good. The story is highly entertaining, the methods of revenge are mostly realistic and quite impressive in how easily they could be replicated in real life as are the other aspects of the business except for the matchmaking. The meditation process made a lot of sense, sometimes all relationships need is a person in the middle to help bring them to their senses. And as harsh as the break up service seemed, sometimes it was handled better than what the other person might have done.

Love, Inc is a diverting read that isn't sickeningly sick, instead it's the right mix of lighthearted fun combined with accessible, genuine lessons about crushes and relationships. A bonus was the fact that Zahra was half Pakistani but her heritage wasn't the center of the plot, instead it focused on her relationship business that she started with Syd and Kali. She does complain a lot about her Scottish red hair and not feeling like a fully fledged MOT (Member of the Tribe) but she worries that her mother's parents who are visiting from Pakistan want to keep her newly separated parents apart permanently. Therefore she does everything in her power to resist her grandparents efforts to make her fully embrace her heritage, she doesn't want it to seem like shes betraying her dad's heritage and giving up on their marriage. I also loved how the setting of Austin, Texas was like a fourth main character which I love especially because I know little about Texas. Austin sounds like a vibrant, entertaining and artful city. I definitely recommend this story for the summer, not too heavy but not too light and if you liked John Tucker Must Die, you will really like this book.

Disclosure: Received from Yan, thank you so much!

PS This quote amused me and also gave me something to think about

"'You're getting brainwashed and you don't even know it. Pretty soon they'll have you wrapped up in a sari and on a plane to Karachi. They'll marry you off to the first old guy who offers a decent dowry.'
'Zahra! You're like a racist or something.' [Saliyah-Zahra's sister]
'It's not racism when you're mocking your own culture'" (pg. 133). Hmm is it or isn't it? I'm inclined to agree with her but I'm not 100% sure how I feel about mocking your own culture. Especially because someone will inevitably complain that that's 'not fair'.